


the blood on my teeth is far beyond dry

by SnorkleShit



Series: I thought of angels (choking on their halos) [8]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Assholery, Faunus!Cardin, Gen, Healing, Multi, archester deal with it, child mutilation, redemption arc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-29
Updated: 2015-04-29
Packaged: 2018-03-26 06:57:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3841402
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SnorkleShit/pseuds/SnorkleShit
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jaune reaches out, and if you look just right you can see his halo of light.</p>
            </blockquote>





	the blood on my teeth is far beyond dry

**Author's Note:**

  * For [saph](https://archiveofourown.org/users/saph/gifts).



Everything moves in spirals, if you think about it. A fluid and yet angular movement, that’s what makes up this world. Pyrrha's eyes watch as Jaune walks slowly around the edge of the circle of light that is casting down on arena floor, a pillar of light amongst the darkness. He seems to be hesitating, and Cardin hasn’t noticed him yet.   
Finally, in an eternity of a second, Jaune stepped into the light. He started to glow, and Pyrrha knows it’s not the light hitting his white shirt. His heart pours from his skin, soul leaking into the air. It never ceases to take her breath away, how much raw power he has inside of him. He hasn’t mastered it, has yet to find his semblance. Pyrrha knows what he plans to do, and it’s something not many people can do.   
Jaune takes another step forward. It’s now that Cardin’s head whipped up, and he tried to move backwards, towards the edge of the darkness, away from the light. In the dark he can’t be seen for what he is, he can blend into the nothingness. The comfort stems from the fact that in the oblivion, his own emptiness seems far less vast.   
“It’s okay.” Jaune said with a nervous smile.  
“Leave me the fuck alone.” Cardin snarled.   
Jaune moved slowly, nervously. As if he was approaching a wounded animal.  
“You don’t need to be hostile. I just want to help you, man, you’re bleeding everywhere.” Jaune tried to suggest. Cardin glared up at him, and braced a hand against the floor to try and push himself up.  
“Fuck off. You don’t really want to help me, you just want to help anything you see because you’re a good person.” Cardin huffed.   
“So are you.” Jaune replied. Cardin stared up at him, then burst out laughing. His laughter sounded brittle and broken, and tasted like metal.   
“I’m the opposite of good- i’m not even that! I’m nothing! Leave me alone.”  
“You could be good. You’ve got it in you. You’re just afraid to be. Just like i’m afraid to be a leader, i’m afraid of being strong. Let me help you.” Jaune’s eyes were innocent, but wise. Cardin tried to push himself up, but crashed down to his knees. Just like in Forever Fall, Jaune reached his hand out to Cardin. It was glowing with it’s own light, and Cardin suddenly felt a rush of warmth, as if he’d been cold inside his whole life.  
He sagged, and bowed his head. He couldn’t do this. Couldn’t accept Jaune’s help, no matter how much he wanted to.  
“You shouldn’t touch me. You’re too good.” Cardin sighed.  
“Why did you hurt me, then?” Jaune asked, voice edged in steel.  
“Because I didn’t think you were strong. I thought you were easy. It felt good to hurt you, made it hurt a little less inside. But it also hurt more. I don’t know. I never know. I also thought you were beautiful, and I wanted to make you stronger. But I had no right. I never had a right to look at you and hope I could help you make it at this school, let alone by dragging you around by your ear and hitting you. I shouldn’t have done that. I shouldn’t hit people. I don’t have any right, they’re all better than me. But that just pisses me off and I hit them more because I should be the one that’s better. I’m the strongest, except the fact that i’m not. There’s no point in trying, nothing is ever gonna work. Stop trying to help me, i’m not broken. I was born like this. Weak, and incomplete, and angry, and an asshole. It’s all i’ve got, so leave me alone, and go be amazing with all you’re amazing friends. Pyrrha and the weird fire hottie and the quiet guy and all of them. Leave me alone.” Cardin’s voice was tired and angry and miserable all at once. He turned away, moving towards the dark and displaying his back to Jaune, the only part of him left in the light. 

Jaune blinked, trying to digest all that information. He stared down at the bigger boy, who seemed so small at the moment. Through the blood and the scratches he could see the scars.  
“Why isn’t your aura healing you?” Jaune asked softly.  
“Don’t really have that much, and I used it all. Don’t be an idiot.” Cardin snapped wearily.  
“Don’t say mean things I know you don’t mean. Just stop.” Jaune snapped back. Then he reached out, and let his hand hover over Cardin’s back. Cardin froze, but made no move to pull away this time.   
“I can feel your aura, under the surface, reaching for mine. I wonder if this is how Pyrrha felt when she unlocked mine…it’s because you’re soul is so contained, probably. It’s an extension of your soul, right? You hold everything in, so it makes sense your aura holds itself back as well. Maybe I can do what she did…” Jaune whispered to himself aloud. Then he concentrated, and brushed his fingers against Cardin’s back. Light rippled over Cardin’s skin, and he gasped. The wounds disappeared, and the blood both on him and on the floor faded away. Only the scars remained.   
“Well, that’s not what I meant to do, but it works.” Jaune laughed.  
Cardin turned back towards him, and stood up. He felt renewed, and for the first time, he didn’t feel like their was a hurricane under his skin, ripping him apart. His chest didn’t burn with anger and ache with agony. He felt...lighter. He felt himself smile. Jaune saw, and smiled back with light in his eyes.  
Jaune scooped up Cardin’s armour and shirt and handed it to him. Cardin quickly put it back on, feeling better that he wasn’t so exposed. Then the blond boy laid a hand on Cardin’s shoulder. Cardin stiffened on instinct, but resisted the urge to run away.  
“You’ve got good inside you, you just need to stop letting your asshole family and your ego issues hold it back. I can help. You bullied me and I saved your life. You owe me. Consider letting me help you you’re first act of repaying your debts. You deserve people who believe in you. C’mon, we better get back to our dorms, we should get some sleep.”   
People who believe in you.   
Cardin just stared at Jaune as he turned with a smile to go. He didn’t move, and his heart plummeted again. Jaune looked back over his shoulder.  
“You coming?”  
Cardin shook his head, stilll a little taken aback at Jaune’s kindness and his own revelations about himself.   
“I...I got in a fight with my team. They kinda hate me, and I tried to attack Russell. I wasn’t gonna hurt him really bad...I was just angry, I wanted them to respect me again. Fear me, I guess. Always been the same thing in my book. I shouldn’t have..but I wanted- I can’t go back. Not right now. Probably not tomorrow. I’ll go...sleep in the locker rooms. ” Cardin shook his head, rubbing the bridge of his nose. He didn’t know why words came so easily to Jaune, unlike they did to anyone else. Still hard, though. It was almost scary.  
“Oh. You’re book sounds like bullshit. Fear and respect aren’t the same thing. They feared you because you hurt people, so they hurt people too. They probably respected you too, because they saw glimpses of your goodness too. I’m sure it’ll work out. Ozpin made us all leaders because he saw something in us, right? He’s the one who told me you were here. He believes in you, too. C’mon, you can stay at our dorm. I’m sure he’ll overlook it, he seems invested in your happiness lately.” Jaune shrugged.  
Pyrrha began to pull away from the railing. She wasn’t need here anymore. 

Cardin shook his head. “I don’t-” Jaune stepped back again and took Cardin’s hand, pulling him towards the exit.   
“I’m not taking no for an answer, man.” 

 

Cardin just let himself be lead away, mind reeling.


End file.
